


Whatever it takes (English Edit)

by Kuchi90



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Romanogers Appreciation Week 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2020-06-26 12:36:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19768333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kuchi90/pseuds/Kuchi90
Summary: "Protect the planet at all costs, is the only thing left to do ..."





	Whatever it takes (English Edit)

**Author's Note:**

> Italics are flashbacks (...)

Natasha Romanoff was a strong woman. Throughout the years she felt herself getting stronger and stronger from all the experiences she went through.

But this time was an exception.

She was broken. There was nothing or no one that could ease the pain she was feeling.

There was a thunderstorm in NYC, that night. The Avengers compound was silent. The only heard noises were ocasionally the ones coming from the electricity generator or from the rain. It was pouring down. The rain was hitting the windows heavily.

The nightmares had returned. She couldn’t find a way for them to stop. Wanda could help relax her mind but she was not there.

Besides Wanda there was Clint. He was the only one who could calm Natasha’s overwhelming thoughts. But she didn’t know where he was. The Russian was not even sure if her partner was still alive or had been killed by Thanos’ snap.

She had no idea.

It was all a fog in her mind. The future was difficult to predict.

Natasha hated staying at the compound instead of fighting alonside her teammates. The only reason why she did it was because Steve begged her not to fight in this battle.

Maybe things would have turned out different. But he couldn’t take any chances. Steve was not losing another one he loved.

Tears started streaming down Natasha’s face. She was having another terrible nightmare. Her mind kept playing with her again and again.

(...)

**Wakanda, 2 days before the incident ...**

_— You know this is not a game, right, Rogers?_

_— I'm not playing —He replied—, I always take things seriously._

_— Then ...What will his name be, then?_

_She took one of Steve’s hands and placed it on her bulging belly. She was seven months pregnant._

_Rogers still felt nervous when he felt his baby kicking. It was a magical and chilling feeling at the same time, sensing his baby forming inside the woman he loved._

_— If she's a girl ... —He started—, I want her to be called Natalia, like you —He said. The blonde rolled her eyes a little when she heard that comment—, seriously, I love your name._

_— Steve ... can you stop being so mellow a moment?, —She claimed—, there are many girl names that are beautiful…_

_— But I like yours ..._

_— All right. —She gave up—, but what if its a boy? —She looked at him in the eyes—, you will not name him Steve, will you?_

_— Truth is, it didn’t ocur to me we could have a boy. – He said – I have always believed the baby would be a girl._

_— Aren't you curious to know what it will be? —She asked, hugging him._

_— Of course I do, but I like the surprise factor —He said this, snuggling her closer to him in bed—, but if it bothers you or makes you nervous, we can tell Shuri that-_

_— No, it's good like that. I share your curiosity —she said—, Whatever it is, we will love it..._

_— I will love you even more then._

(…)

Natasha got out of bed and watched the storm through the window. The landscape was beautiful and was a match to her emotions.

A tear fell down her cheek. Then another one, and another one, until they were streaming incontrollably down her face.

She felt Steve’s arms wrapping around her waist and he pressed a warm kiss on her neck. He was always there for her, no matter what.

Another horrible memory crossed her mind in that moment.

(…)

_Natasha was in one of the laboratories, where Shuri had revived Vision. Unfortunately the android had been kidnapped by Corvus Glaive so he could steal the Mind Stone._

_Her only support was her weapon, wich enabled her to evade some of the Outriders who were invading the royal palace._

_Her pregnancy was advanced, so she tried not to fight. She only shot the enemies from afar, while Wakanda’s royal guards finished the job of tearing them apart._

_Natasha lef the laboratory, to see if she could provide more backing from another direction, when suddenly she heard screams of dispair. They came from several guards. The blonde’s heart began beating so quickly that she felt a strong pang in her belly. The nerves were taking over her. She couldn’t afford that, not now._

_She decided to hide somewhere. The screams and the heart-rending tears that were streaming down her face caused her pain to increase more and more._

_“Easy, Natasha…Breathe…”. Natasha repeated this aloud, keeping her eyes closed. The pain was growing and she breathed deeper in an attempt to ease the pain._

_Suddenly, the noise and voices suddenly disappeared. That caught the attention of the blonde, at the same time that the pain disappeared in her bell. She decided to get up from where she was crouched, placed the machine gun she was carrying, on her back and left the room carefully to assess the surroundings._

_She walked through the corridors, looking around her. All she saw was ashes, all over the place. It was all very strange. “Where did all of this come from?” – Natasha thought._

_She returned to the main room, where only a couple of guards remained. She crossed the room to them, to check on them._

_— We're fine, Miss Romanoff —one said—, but, but the others... the others ..._

_— The others what? What happened? —Her voice was overwhelming and firm—, what are these ashes? Where did they come from?_

_— The others… people… —She turned to another guard as this one was struggling to answer her question…everyone just disappeared._

_— What? How did they disappear? —The ex-spy looked around her —, Where is Shuri?_

_— "Nat," —She heard a voice on her communicator—, "Nat, can you hear me?"_

_— Steve? – She pressed her palm against the comm in her ear so she could hear better – Steve, are you okay?!_

_— "Yes, I'm fine ..”. —He remained silent for a while. Natasha noticed something had happened._

_— Tell me what happened ... please, Steve, I can’t understand what’s going on —She begged him with a desperate voice—, two guards informed me some people just disappeared. How did that happen?_

_— "Thanos ... he did ..."_

_She was listening to Steve, when a sudden very strong sting hit her. She fell to the floor, groaning with the pain._

_»"Nat ?!" —He shouted from the other side of the comm, as he could hear her. He got terrified, thinking someone was attacking his girlfriend— “Natasha!”_

_— This can’t… it shouldn’t be happening. – She was in a lot of pain, still couldn’t believe what was happening to her._

_— Stay still, I’m coming to you. Don’t turn off the comm.” —Steve replied on the other side of the line. Natasha could hear the desperation and worry in his voice. It was also agitated as he was running to meet her._

_She fainted with the pain. The world went black around her… until she woke up and had to face reality._

(...)

— Nat… —Steve’s hoarse voice brought her back to the present—, come to sleep.

— I'm not sleepy…

— Come with me, you’ll get cold if you keep staying up so late.

Steve knew that Natasha would never be the same again. What happened marked her life forever. It was possible that nothing could ever reverse it.

He pressed his lips to her neck, trying to ease her sadness. That was all she felt.

The first time she heard the news of her pregnancy, she couldn't believe it. Not in a million years she expected to ever get pregnant. The _graduation ceremony_ in the Red Room made that clearly impossible. But the years went by and along it, new science discoveries were made.

The news took Steve by surprise. It was like a dream come true. The desire to have a family came back in the blink of an eye. Everything in that moment was magical to him.

The months passed by and Natasha’s belly grew every day. Steve was the happiest man in the world. He constantly said proudly that the little creature growing in there was his son. He felt pride whenever he mentioned the Black Widow would be their mother. Natasha’s cheeks turned pink every time Steve said those words.

Both were really happy and excited. They just wanted the day of the baby’s birth to come.

Without thinking, Rogers kissed Natasha's lips and she kissed him back, warm as usual, but he could feel how off she was. She had been like that ever since Thanos’s snap provoked her a miscarriage. 

Once again, and without coming to a stop, tears streamed down the ex-spy’s eyes. Steve held her in a tight hug and he also cried. Still he was trying to be strong for her.

— Don't be so hard on yourself Steve —The woman said—, I know you're worse than me ... with this ...

— I’m fine… —Natasha looked up and met his eyes. They were shining with tears that would not fall.

— Steve, it's okay if you cry —She said—, you don’t have to be strong for me...

— I… —He rubbed one of his hands across his face—, this is a nightmare.

After saying this he sat on the edge of the bed, followed by her, who settled down beside him. She caressed his back delicately. It hurt her seeing him that way.

» I don’t know how we got to this situation —He made a small pause and resumed talking again—, so many happened…one thing after the other.

— I know —She answered—, everything was different and difficult this time —Natasha sighed—, We can’t do much tho, except try to move on.

— Nat ... we lost the battle — His blue eyes completely petrified her— , ... we lost _our son_ ...

The blonde's throat tightened at the memory of that heartbreaking scene. She would never forget that day. Ever.

» I know that for you —Steve spoke again, delicately this time—, this is more terrible and frightning… You felt it in your belly.

— I could feel everything ... —She spoke—, it was as if ... they removed a part of me ... more than the physical pain.. —Her voice was getting lower and lower.

He was observing her, not daring to say a word. He adnired how she could still continue keeping her head held high, in spite of the sadness she felt. She was a very strong woman,

» ...it was a nice experience to be pregnant —A small smile, sad, was showing on her lips—, at least, I will not have any cravings anymore.

— I had to get up at 3 in the morning one day to prepare a fruit smoothie... —He answered comically, but in a low voice—, although I loved doing it for you.

She looked down at her hands suddenly. She realized at that moment how Steve loved to make her blush with what he said… or maybe she’d become more sentimental with her pregnancy.

— Do you always have to be that polite, Rogers?

— You know I don’t do it on purpose —He apologized—, I don’t realize ...

— I know. It’s in your blood —Natasha smiled.

Finally, he made her smile. Steve’s heart was happy, but he didn’t tell her. He was content to make her happy. One step at a time.

— Nat… —He started. Natasha turned to him—, I know, that…maybe this will take us a long time to…

— Steve, I know. We can spend years until we solve this —She nodded affirmatively, because it was a reality. It was better if they accepted it now.

— ... I will do, _whatever it takes_ to reverse all this...

— Steve...

An overwhelming silence took over the room. Natasha didn’t know how to take the last thing he said.

— Even if I have to… —He did not manage to finish the sentence, since Natasha covered his mouth with the palm of her hand, so he couldn’t finish it.

— Don’t say it... —Although he had not finished speaking, she knew exactly what he was referring to—, please _don’t say it._

The blonde removed her hand from his lips, feeling sad again, lowering her gaze.

— It's the least I can do _for you_ ... for _the others_ —He said firmly. She couldn’t accept that—, I know I have to do it. 

— Steve, you forget completely, we're still a team ... you're not alone in this. It's us too —She countered—, besides, if you wanna be fair, it’s Thor’s fault —She said this jokingly, to lift their spirits. Steve watched her for a moment, giving her a small smile in response to her bad taste joke.

— Well… I can’t disagree with you, because you’re right —His gaze relaxed—, technically…

— So? —She wanted Steve to drop the idea on his mind—, we’re together in this, right?

Steve intertwined his fingers with Natasha’s. He relaxed and squeezed her hand in response.

—Yes...

—It’s not fair for you to carry this weight on your shoulders... you already sacrificed yourself in the past once, Steve —Her voice was more cautious when mentioning this, since she knew that, for him, it was a sensitive subject—, you came back and... everything changed. Your life changed completely.

— You’re right. At first, it was alll very difficult, — He kept holding Romanoff’s hand—, but you made everything easier... —Sometimes, Natasha couldn’t say with exact science whether Rogers liked to flirt or was mere his instinct to be like that.

— Anyone could have done what I did, the difference is, I was there to do it —Natasha always found some excuse so she didn’t get the recognition for doing something good.

— But nobody forced you —He said—, you did it on your own... because you wanted to do it.

The former Captain America could notice the glow in Natasha’s green eyes. They were shining as he said those words. It was obvious. Natasha Romanoff had lived a lifetime without getting credit or anything in return for her work. Steve could understand her attitude toward life. Besides, he have known her for many years now.

He kissed her again, but this kiss was different. He put all his gratitude toward Natasha into the kiss. The ex-soldier owed her for helping him take back his lost time. For helping him deal with his adaptation problems, after he came back from the ice; for supporting him in the good and bad times after the airport battle; for staying with him, hiding in the shadows, since they’re fugitives. Despite all those circumstances, Natasha Romanoff never stepped back, always stayed by his side.

And yes, it was true. She wanted to help him when he came back from the ice. It was amazing for her to meet the famous Captain America in person. She knew almost all his stories and what he achieved in the past. He was a man worhty of admiration.

— Promise me something —She looked at Steve with determination in her eyes. Steve knew that look very well—, Whatever happens… we will stay together, just like we have for years.

The blond nodded. When he made a promise, he intended to keep it. In addition, Natasha was the voice of his conscience, he trusted her with everything.

»...and if we have to —She paused and swallowed to clear her throat—, and if we have to sacrifice our lives… we will do it together.

Steve sighed with his eyes closed. He was feeling very stressed due to the current situation. It was the normal reaction: they had lost the battle against Thanos; the vile Titan was nowhere to be found; half of the life on Earth disappeared after the snap, including he and Natasha’s baby, who never saw the world… It was too much to absorb in such a short time.

The only thing Rogers knew for sure was he had what he needed to go and fight: **a team**.

And whatever had to happen, they would pay the cost and take the consequences. Because that’s what heroes do.

Maybe, in some future, things will change, but for now, they have no other way but to protect the planet, whatever the cost.

.

.

**THE END**

**Author's Note:**

> I want to thank @maryjobros8 who kindly helped me translate this oneshot, since I don’t have native English. And I dedicate it to her, thank you Mary!
> 
> Can you follow me on twitter @kuchi_ :)
> 
> See ya~


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